The present invention relates to an educational toy clock. More specifically, the present invention relates to an educational toy clock which challenges a child to match colors and numbers as well as to learn time.
There are a variety of toy clocks and educational toys which are available on the market today. The majority of educational toy clocks on the market serve a single function, to aid in teaching children to recognize and tell time.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,356,929 discloses an educational toy clock which has removable circular blocks which have numerals on both sides. One side of the circular blocks has the Roman numerals with the opposite side of the circular block having the corresponding Arabic characters thereon. The purpose of this clock is for a child to assort the blocks and properly place them in the openings of the base to represent a correct clock dial.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,245,475 teaches an educational toy device which may take the form of a clock face having removable members. The removable members are in the form removable numbers of the clock face which fit into correspondingly shaped recesses.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,362,103 discloses an animated toy clock game including a plurality of removable elements having numerals thereon and a plurality of openings to receive the removable elements. The game includes an animated figure having a head which is operable to indicate approval by nodding in an affirmative manner when a number element is properly positioned within the clock face and to indicate disapproval when a number element is improperly positioned in an opening within the clock face.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,853,804 relates to a time teaching device comprised of a game board with a plurality of recessed areas spaced around a clock face and a plurality of removable numeral-bearing elements adapted to fit within the recesses to aid in teaching children to read time.
None of the prior art clock toys provide for any other educational challenges over and above the teaching of time-telling.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an educational toy clock which includes a base member having a plurality of spaced apart recesses about the outer periphery and a central recess. A rotatable mounting means is provided and adapted for placement in the central recess. A pair of clock hands are removably mounted in the mounting means for rotation therewith. A plurality of disc members received in the bottom of said recesses, each of the disc members having a color and number thereon. The clock further includes a plurality of dowels adapted to be received in the recesses, the dowels having first and second ends with the first end having a colored surface and the second end having a numbered surface. Whereby, in use, the first ends of the dowels can be matched to the colors of the disc members in the bottom of the recesses or alternately, the second ends of the dowels can be matched with the numbers of the disc members.
In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a wooden toy clock comprising: a base unit; a plurality of spaced apart recesses around the outer periphery of the base unit, the recesses having on a bottom surface a color and number from 1 to 12 thereon, each recess having a different color and number; a rotatable mounting means rotatably mounted at a central position of the base unit, the rotatable mounting means comprised of upper and lower housings rotatably mounted together; an hour hand mounted to the lower housing of the mounting means; a minute hand mounted to the upper housing of the mounting means; a plurality of dowels adapted for cooperation with the recesses, each of the dowels having a color on one end matching a color of one of the recesses and having a number from 1 to 12 on the other end; whereby the colors on the one ends of the dowels can be matched with the colors of the recesses and the numbers on the other ends of the dowels can be matched with the numbers of the recesses.